On the day of the alleged assault, the father sent his daughter and her brother out to feed the chickens. Soon after, the boy rushed back in distress, and told the father that someone had grabbed his sister, and carried her off to the nearby barn.

The father left and – following the sound of his daughter’s cries for help – and found 47-year-old Jesus Mora Flores molesting his daughter behind the barn. According to documents from the court, both the girl and Flores had their underwear removed.

Flying into a rage, the father pulled Flores away from his daughter, before hitting him several times around the head and on his neck until the molester fell unconscious.

Still from the American Broadcast Corporation.

The father quickly called 911. Authorities released the distressing tapes of the call, as the frantic 24-year-old begged for help.

“I need an ambulance. This guy was raping my daughter and I don’t know what to do,” he said.

The rancher had trouble describing his location and told the 911 dispatcher, “Come on! This guy is going to die on me! I don’t know what to do.”

Authorities have confirmed that a sexual assault did indeed take place, which means that the identity of the father and the girl are not being revealed in line with laws regarding sexual assault cases involving children.

Although Flores’ death was initially investigated as a homicide, the father has not been charged with the crime. A sheriff the area said back in June that he was not willing to press charges against the 24-year-old, and that the case would instead be presented to a jury.

Sheriff Micah Harmon told CNN that the father was “very remorseful”. “You have a right to defend your daughter,” he continued. “The girl’s father acted in defense of his third person. Once the investigation is completed we will submit it to the district attorney who then submits it to the grand jury, who will decide if they will indict him.”

In the end, the district attorney decided not to press charges.

District Attorney Heather McMinn explained the reasoning to reporters, who she told:

Under the law in the state of Texas deadly force is authorised and justified in order to stop an aggravated sexual assault or sexual assault.

All the evidence provided by the sheriff’s department and the Texas Rangers indicated that’s what was occurring when the victim’s father arrived at the scene.

Judicial District Attorney Heather McMinn.

The case raises questions about whether there are any situations – and under what kind of circumstances –force might be justified to protect the people you love.

Although we have all heard the adage, ‘violence is never the answer’, there are undoubtedly many parents who would not think twice before trying to physically restrain or incapacitate another adult, in an attempt to protect their child.

Other individuals from within the Texan community were, for the most part, in support of the father’s case. One man said, “He [Flores] got what he deserved, big time.”

Another commented, “I agree with him totally. I would probably do worse. The family will have to deal with that the rest of their lives, no matter what happens to the father. Even if they let him go, he and his child will have to deal with that the rest of their lives.”